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December 2011 Spotlight on Success

The charter school movement is dependent upon the hard work of visionary founders, leaders, and authorizers, plus dedicated teachers and volunteers and inspired students. The Association is proud to recognize several of them this month.

Congratulations to Aspire Titan Academy teacher Meredith Dadigan for winning American Literacy Corporation's Outstanding Contributions to Literacy Award. The award is granted each year to excellent teachers who show the greatest literacy improvement of their students. Dadigan was also the recipient of CCSA's 2011 Hart Vision CA Charter School Teacher of the Year Award.

The Julian Charter School robotics team recently received the Innovative Solution Award at a regional First Lego League robotics qualifying tournament in Palm Desert, California. The award was presented to the students for their ideas to train restaurant staff in proper gluten-free food preparation and to help people with celiac disease test food for cross-contamination. Read more.

Ralph Opacic, founder and executive director of Orange County High School of the Arts (OCHSA) in Santa Ana, was singled out by the Orange County Register for his leadership of the charter school. According to the Register, employees nominating OCHSA for a "top workplaces" award praised Opacic "for leadership that stands apart even among strong competition."